New answers tagged phrase-requests
3
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
Phone it in is the perfect idiom here—it's almost like a pun and oddly fitting for your customer service call transfer example. It's as if the only thing being transferred is the effort.
Wiktionary ...
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3
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
This is a somewhat specialized usage, but the US Army commonly uses the term "shamming" to indicate the gentle art of not working while not getting caught at it. It is most commonly applied ...
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1
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Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
If the real focus here is to "alleviate the tension", then you are attempting to placate the person.
to soothe or mollify especially by concessions
MW
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1
vote
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
The verb "to turf" is slang (popularized by Samuel Shem's book House of God) and matches the usage in the example: to transfer a problem to someone else so you don't have to deal with it.
It'...
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-1
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
I would like to suggest "lotus eater".
°Noun Greek Mythology:a member of a people represented by Homer as living in a state of dreamy forgetfulness and idleness as a result of eating the ...
1
vote
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
My understanding is that you are looking for a word for when the other person is taking some small action just for show that they know won't do any good, perhaps just to get rid of you. Sadly, I don't ...
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1
vote
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
Perhaps it may simply be 'unproductive' that speaks to doing something that does nothing.
Also, 'fruitless', or 'pointless'.
A grade of this concept may use, 'inefficient'.
Some people will do ...
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2
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
It's a bit lengthy, and carries a notion of futility:
(May as well) rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic.
(Edit addition of a suggestion for coining new allegory):
Like running in the "...
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7
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
Go through the motions might be an accurate usage here. Collins explains
phrase
If you say that someone is going through the motions, you think they are only saying or doing something because it is ...
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2
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
blow hot air
Much agitation, no practical result!
If you say that someone's claims or promises are just hot air, you are
criticizing them because they are made mainly to impress people and
have no ...
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-1
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
This behaviour smacks of what people do when you say that they procrastinate or that they are dilatory.
(SOED) procrastinate 2 Defer action, delay; be dilatory.
(SOED) dilatory 1 Tending to cause ...
- 23.9k
2
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
This sounds like a case of passing the buck:
pass the buck
1. (idiomatic, informal) To transfer responsibility or blame from oneself onto another; to absolve oneself of concern for a given
matter by ...
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4
votes
Word or longer string meaning "to do something without really doing anything"
You may be asking two different questions about doing something meaningless and doing the bare minimum.
If someone has achieved nothing and just wasted time, you could say they were spinning their ...
- 24.1k
2
votes
Name for group of buttons that move values up/down or inc/decrement
An everyday term for such things in the physical world is knob.
Search Google images for "stereo knob" (just to eliminate cabinet knobs) even though these devices appear on many different ...
- 22.7k
2
votes
Name for group of buttons that move values up/down or inc/decrement
The physical devices that such GUI elements emulate are called momentary rocker switches. The modifier momentary specifies that the switch is spring-loaded and returns to its default middle position ...
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3
votes
A better term or phrase than "privileged", something akin to material advantage, time investment
You can refer to the group with the advantage as advantaged and conversely the other group as disadvantaged.
Merriam Webster:
advantaged
adjective
: having or providing an advantage and especially a ...
- 28.3k
2
votes
Alternative for 'coffee' as a social catch up?
One alternative to 'catch up for a coffee' is to say 'catch up for a chat'. This phrase doesn't specify a drink, making it a neutral option for social catch-ups. You can find numerous examples of '...
- 65.5k
0
votes
Inwardly nodded appreciatively?
With your examples, what you are looking for is proud or one of its synonyms. I don't know if there is a word for passive/silent pride. Maybe pleased, honored, or satisfied. None of these have to have ...
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0
votes
A better term or phrase than "privileged", something akin to material advantage, time investment
There are some words I can think of for a two class society.
The two groups would be considered bi-polar as a whole, the haves and have nots, highbrow and lowbrow, upper and lower class, even possibly ...
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0
votes
Is there a current, widely familiar equivalent of "Irish bull"?
You might ask if the defining characteristic here is the overall contradiction, or the fact that the reader is led down one path only to encounter a twist at the end. If the latter, you could consider ...
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0
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Is there a current, widely familiar equivalent of "Irish bull"?
Besides the fact that "headscratcher" makes evident, that is, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the fact that "something […] is confusing, mysterious, or hard to understand&...
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0
votes
English equivalent for the Persian idiom "send someone out in pursuit of black chickpeas"
Surprised no one has already suggested busywork.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Busy_work
I have Pete doing busy work so he'll stop interrupting me.
Mary has me doing this, but it just feels like ...
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1
vote
A better term or phrase than "privileged", something akin to material advantage, time investment
The adjective "well-endowed" seems the perfect choice, as the idea of special right is not a part of the connotations this word confers.
(SOED) well-endowed a. a) Well provided with ...
- 23.9k
2
votes
What is it called when you have a hobby where you're good enough at to impress others but you yourself know you're only beginning?
In that situation, I'd probably refer to myself as a journeyman. As in "journeyman carpenter" or "journeyman mouth harpist".
Its got a traditional technical meaning, as tradesman ...
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0
votes
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
Compass
Whilst it's not a particularly common idiom, it's an easily understood metaphor that seems to achieve what you're looking to achieve here.
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1
vote
What is it called when you have a hobby where you're good enough at to impress others but you yourself know you're only beginning?
I'm not sure there is a term for exactly what you describe. I think the problem is that such a term would only be utilized by someone with a third person omniscient point of view. That precludes ...
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2
votes
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
Indicator
It's not the most figurative word that can be used here, but it fits the use case perfectly.
link
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4
votes
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
Not a noun phrase, but a fairly common idiom is ‘to see which way the wind is blowing’.
For example, someone realising that they're not going to get their own way because the majority is against them ...
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0
votes
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
Trajectory (n.) is a good choice for trends or progressions. Merriam Webster's definition even gives this as its preferred example.
2
: a path, progression, or line of development resembling a ...
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An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
If you're amenable to gen-z/meme lingo, Stonks can be used to describe something that is trending beneficially (the opposite being Stanks for if it's losing value/becoming worse). Definitely not ...
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17
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What is it called when you have a hobby where you're good enough at to impress others but you yourself know you're only beginning?
Two more options:
Impressive to the untrained eye is rather an idiom than a full expression, but seems to capture the essence of the intent quite well. Although it seems to get mostly for the opposite,...
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-2
votes
What is it called when you have a hobby where you're good enough at to impress others but you yourself know you're only beginning?
That happened to me quite a bit when I was in college. I called it "involuntary oneupsmanship." Thinking of that British comedy (with Alistair Sim?) that popularized the idea of ...
0
votes
Inwardly nodded appreciatively?
Inwardly nodded appreciatively
All nods are exterior, and the verb acknowledges this. If you depart into metaphor, then the adverb "inwardly" will have to be used.
You have a verb and two ...
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-1
votes
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
A signpost can be referred to figuratively as an indicator of something, which can include things coming in the future. It is basically the same as a sign, but in a way encapsulates the item or event ...
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5
votes
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
One of the most common is sign. This is sense 5 of Collins:
If there is a sign of something, there is something which shows that it exists or is happening.
Another is forerunner Collins gives:
If ...
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33
votes
Accepted
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
Bellwether is used figuratively for this sense.
one that takes the lead or initiative : LEADER
also : an indicator of trends
Merriam-Webster
The term is derived from the practice of placing a bell ...
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9
votes
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
A harbinger of future trends is something that foreshadows these trends.
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13
votes
An idiom similar to 'canary' or 'litmus test' that expresses the trend or direction a thing is pointed
The Acme Fashion awards herald / are a herald of the fashion items that will
be popular this year.
herald (n.)
A person (or thing) that precedes and announces the approach of
another; a forerunner, ...
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13
votes
What is it called when you have a hobby where you're good enough at to impress others but you yourself know you're only beginning?
You know enough to be dangerous.
A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
When somebody has basic competency in doing something, but is not an expert, so he or she can potentially make mistakes that ...
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4
votes
What is it called when you have a hobby where you're good enough at to impress others but you yourself know you're only beginning?
Impostor syndrome seems close. However, it suggests the person experiencing it is more skilled than they believe, and are being overcritical of themselves.
From wikipedia:
Impostor syndrome, also ...
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22
votes
What is it called when you have a hobby where you're good enough at to impress others but you yourself know you're only beginning?
You are a big fish in a small pond.
Being a big fish in a small pond refers to a setting where you are
more powerful/important/influential than your, rather small, peer
group. [A person whose ...
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24
votes
Accepted
What is it called when you have a hobby where you're good enough at to impress others but you yourself know you're only beginning?
In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king. Per Wiktionary:
Even someone with limited abilities or opportunities is dominant over, and considered special by, those who have even fewer ...
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0
votes
How do you say derogatorily "you should be happy about what I did to you"?
We have an idiom that might work:
to kiss the ground someone walks on
If someone says I kiss the ground you walk on, it means they greatly admire or respect you.
If someone says You should kiss the ...
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0
votes
How do you say derogatorily "you should be happy about what I did to you"?
I don't believe there's an equivalent phrase in English. Some close phrases might be
"Consider yourself lucky."
This is a dismissive retort that implies the person should feel fortunate for ...
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1
vote
Accepted
A better phrase for "vast minority"
Your intuition is correct. Vast means large, broad, expansive, and so on. It's not a good qualifier to describe the smallness of something.
I would say something like:
My views would not be ...
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0
votes
A better phrase for "vast minority"
I guess either of two should work:
Minor segment
Limited few
1
vote
Word, phrase or idiom for reaping the consequences of false belief in being able to control chaotic results
Put (one's) head in a lion's mouth
Literally, a lion trainer (not tamer) or one's assistant putting their head in a lion's mouth to demonstrate control and trust, and bravery as well, for all to see.
...
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2
votes
Word, phrase or idiom for reaping the consequences of false belief in being able to control chaotic results
This expression may be more general than you are looking for, but it's common:
You made your bed, now lie in it.
Meaning, "You need to deal with the consequences of a situation you created.&...
- 2,491
3
votes
Word, phrase or idiom for reaping the consequences of false belief in being able to control chaotic results
Although this is not a general answer for all of the cases you mentioned, in the specific case of keeping company with people who have a bad track record, you can consider If you lie down with dogs, ...
- 2,155
2
votes
Word, phrase or idiom for reaping the consequences of false belief in being able to control chaotic results
It's not a standard idiom, but I like "They didn't think their cunning plan all the way through."
(I may be heavily influenced by the TV series "Blackadder".)
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